My wife has greatly appreciated the attention her Thanksgiving turkey preparation article has received (during the holidays it receives thousands of hits more per day than any article I have written for the site--hmmmm…but I am not bothered by this, really….hmmmmm). Therefore, she decided to publish a handful of her original homemade soup recipes on the site as well, in hopes that others will enjoy them as much as I have…

we, as much as we have enjoyed them. I admit it, I am a fan of my wife’s cooking, with an expanding waistline to prove it (at least I love her food most of the time--though it is best that she has omitted her meatloaf and homemade spaghetti sauce recipes). The recipes included below are the recipes Jane has personally selected from her Booth Family Cookbook. Enjoy!

Jane’s Homemade Soup Recipes from Her Booth Family Cookbook

Introduction

My husband loves to eat homemade soup for lunch. I try to incorporate lots of vegetables into my soups as he doesn’t get enough of them otherwise! He enjoys any of these soups, except the purely vegetable-based recipes (if I were to add a cup of diced ham, he would probably like them, too!). [Editor’s Note: My attitude toward vegetable-only soups and stews is aptly described in the Old Testament by the account of a cook, who, not knowing what he was doing, made vegetable stew and served it to the prophets who said, "’There is death in the pot’ And they were unable to eat" (2 Kings 4:40b).]

These are my favorite homemade soups, tailored to my own family’s particular preferences. None include pepper, but feel free to add it according to your own tastes. You may use canned chicken and beef broth when such broth is called for, but I sometimes make my own, which are probably healthier, but sadly take more time in the kitchen. Nonetheless, I have included basic recipes for the homemade broths as well.

Serving hot nourishing soups and cold refreshing drinks to family and friends for lunch reminds me of the Scripture, "'I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.’"(Revelation 3:15-16) As Christians our actions toward others are to be hot (building up others and making them strong as a nourishing soup can do) or cold (like a refreshing drink which revives the tired and thirsty). Never are we to act lukewarm toward family and friends, as if we did not care, providing no edification and no encouragement. So, when you make and serve one of these soup recipes, remember to also offer a word of Scripture as instruction or encouragement, be hot or cold and so uplift others.

Fry ground beef and drain. Melt butter in Dutch oven. Add celery and potatoes and cook 15 minutes. Add flour and parsley, cook for five minutes. Add broth, water, and consommé. Add ground beef to pot, add salt, and simmer one hour. We had this soup just after my son’s birth along with the midwives who attended, and they thought it was wonderful! It is very rich.

Put chicken into large pot, cover with water and bring to boil. Reduce heat and add rest of ingredients. Cover pot and simmer for 1½ hours. Pour through a large colander or strainer, and discard the vegetables(save carrots if you are making chicken soup) Let chicken cool and remove from the bones, cutting into small pieces. Store separately from broth. Refrigerate 24 hours or freeze.

Chicken Soup

Prepare chicken broth. Strain and discard vegetables, except save the carrots and chop into bite size pieces. Let chicken cool and remove from the bones, cutting into small pieces. Return chicken and carrots to cooked broth. Bring to boil again and add matzo balls, noodles, or rice and a bit more garlic if you like, for 30 minutes or so, or just eat the soup plain. Will cure anything, according to folklore (it just hasn't cured anything for us yet, sigh...). Anyway it is very comforting.

Add water to the vegetable broth, bring to a boil. If making with just pasta eliminate the lentil step. Add lentils and salt, gently boil covered for 40 minutes. Stir in the ditalini and cook for 12 minutes. Garnish with crumbled bacon, olive oil, and grated cheese.

Fry salt pork. Cut off fat, crumble. Cook mussels according to package directions, save broth. Sauté onion and celery in butter until it is translucent. Add the flour to make a roux, stirring well. Add the heated clam juice and mussel broth slowly, stirring constantly. Add chicken broth. Stir in clams, mussels, potatoes, salt pork. Bring to boil, simmer ½ hour. Add half and half and garnish with parsley. Clams are actually optional in this chowder. You can eliminate clams and clam juice and just use the mussel juice and chicken broth. This is my husband’s all-time favorite soup.

[Editor’s Note: after making this you will never want to eat the canned version again. This is my third favorite soup in this article. -- Preparing this article for posting is killing me because there is no more soup left in the refrigerator...]